Elle King says she’s the ‘best version’ of herself after her drunken tribute to Dolly Parton.
The 35-year-old singer, who caused a stir earlier this year after performing drunk and shouting profanities during a family-friendly concert at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, now says she has turned her life around.
She told People on Friday: ‘Try having something bad you did go viral — that was pretty tough. I never thought anyone would ever buy a ticket to my show again. But they do.
“I was so afraid to ever have a drink before I went back on stage because I appreciated that someone bought tickets to my concert. I wasn’t going to let them down. I’ve let people down,” she said.
And she feels like she made a bad impression of herself and she regrets it.
Elle King says she’s the ‘best version’ of herself after her drunken tribute to Dolly Parton; seen in March 2024
Earlier this year, Elle performed while drunk and swearing at a family-friendly Dolly Parton birthday tribute concert; Dolly seen in March 2022
“I ended up letting myself down that day, and I never wanted to go through that again,” she confessed.
The mother of one explained that she now performs better because she has learned from difficult moments.
“I can definitely put on a better show now, thanks to some changes I’ve made in my life. That makes me more excited.”
“I do things that I’m proud of. I have a little boy. He’s going to find out about all of this one day and he’s going to see that I’ve tried to just be the best version of myself, and I’ve used that to make myself better, and I’ve done that. It’s more of a love story of myself than anything,” she added.
Now the Good Girls hitmaker is doing better emotionally and is convinced that family should come first.
She said, ‘I’m very happy, I’m very content, which is nice, and I don’t know if I’ve ever really felt that, so it’s a blessing.
‘This is worth all the effort in the world. My family, this is what deserves all the energy and effort. All these other [stuff] is just a plus.’
Elle’s transition into the ‘best version’ of herself came just hours after she released her latest single, High Road, which she admitted was inspired by the events of the past year.
She said: ‘Since last year, whenever something went wrong or something pissed me off, my manager would say, “High Road 2024,” and that was our theme of, “Take the f****** high road, b****. Be the person you hope you can be in any situation.” And it’s just a phrase we’ve used.’
“I can definitely put on a better show because of some changes I’ve made in my life, and that makes me more excited,” Elle said in a throwback photo
‘This is worth all the effort in the world. My family, this is what deserves all the energy and effort. All the other [stuff] is just a plus,’ she added; seen in 2024
“I do things that I’m proud of. I have a little boy. He’s going to figure all this out one day,” she shared; Elle and son Lucky Levi seen in June 2024
The Grammy-nominated singer told the newspaper that she came up with her latest country ballad in the shower and that she finished the song with bassist Paul DeVincenzo.
Elle also confirmed her fourth studio album. She released the lead single, Baby Daddy’s Weekend, in April to positive reviews.
While she hasn’t yet revealed the title of her new record, she said it’s a follow-up to her 2023 album, Come Get Your Wife.